Gearing up to kick off its first varsity athletic seasons, the three Grand Oaks High School football fields consists of Matrix®Turf with Helix Technology, Realfill™ infill, plus V300 epiQ Track®. The new fields have helped generate a lot of interest in athletics with higher participation especially in softball, baseball, soccer, football, and track. All of these sports are participating in newly designed Hellas fields and the running track encircling the football practice field.
Grand Oaks officials are excited to play on Hellas Construction’s cutting-edge turf technology. Grand Oaks head baseball coach Lou Ferrell believes the turf allows his team to have more valuable practice time. “It’s great getting so much more field time and not having to spend so much time draining the field,” Ferrell said. “Being able to work on fundamentals and not worry as much about field maintenance is a benefit of having a turf facility like this.”
Grand Oaks boys’ soccer coach Craig Matthews has noticed how Matrix Helix turf has impacted his team.“When we were on the grass all the time, it was a struggle,” Matthews said. “It’s great to have the Matrix turf as a place we can always go. We don’t need to worry about destroying our clothing because of bad weather conditions.”
Grand Oaks opened its doors in August of 2018 to alleviate overcrowding at Conroe ISD’s Oak Ridge High School. Currently home to only freshmen and sophomore students, Grand Oaks has been restricted to junior varsity sports during the 2018-19 school year. Beginning in the Fall of 2019, the Grizzlies will be eligible to play varsity competition and earn a trip to the University Interscholastic League playoffs. The UIL is an organization that creates rules for and administers almost all athletic, music, and academic contests for public schools in Texas.
Officials at Conroe ISD introduced Matrix with Helix technology to Grand Oaks’ playing fields, the same turf used by the Houston Texans. Helix technology delivers memory and tenacity to a turf, allowing it to bounce back after use. The shape memory in Helix helps each fiber to curl and secure the infill. The curled monofilament fibers deliver the Grizzlies a uniform, aesthetically pleasing playing surface. Helix has a unique shape design, making it the most resilient and durable monofilament fiber in the market.
Grand Oaks school officials also chose to install Hellas’ Realfill infill, made of pea gravel and non-toxic SBR, cuboidal rubber granulates. The base layer of pea gravel assists with shock absorption and drainage by holding the system in place. Rubber granulates minimize “splash-out” and migration thanks to its deliberate shape and size.
The V300 epiQ Track surrounding the newly installed turf is composed of a sealed base layer of polyurethane bound rubber granules then topped with a spray-applied coat of one or two-component polyurethane and EPDM granules. The track’s material makes it an impermeable, paved-in-place, synthetic sport surface – a foundation running track system for any facility. The Grizzlies now have the same track technology at its facility as used by Alabama A&M University.
Hellas Construction, Inc. headquartered in Austin, TX, is the largest vertically-integrated sports construction contractor in the United States, specializing in the general construction of sports facilities and sports surfaces. Hellas champions innovative artificial turf manufacturing, base construction, field, track and tennis planning, along with installation and maintenance. hellasconstruction.com
Grand Oaks High Schoolis a high school in Spring, TX. It is the sixth high school within Conroe Independent School District. gohs.conroeisd.net
Dallas Cowboys headquartered at The Star in Frisco, TX, part of the NFL's NFC East Division. dallascowboys.com
Houston Texansheadquartered in Houston, TX at NRG Stadium, part of the NFL's AFC South Division. houstontexans.com
Alabama A&M University is a college in Huntsville, AL and a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. aamu.edu
March 8, 2019
Contributing Writer: Nick Walters
Media Contact: Jeff Power
Hellas Construction
(512) 297-5708
